


Curious Flight: Art

by candlebark



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Composite Artwork, Dragons, F/F, Fanart, Fanart collection, Ink, Quotations, Sarah Waters, Traditional Media, black and white, image description included
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-05-04
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:47:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23985535
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/candlebark/pseuds/candlebark
Summary: A small series of Morgana/Gwen fanart adhering to the themes of dragons and Sarah Waters's quotes.
Relationships: Gwen/Morgana (Merlin)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 25





	1. My Soul Left Me

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[Image description: The fanart is a composite piece featuring Morgana, Gwen, a dragon, and text. Centered in the photo is Morgana in a hood. She looks into middle distance with a mildly anxious expression. Gwen is in the foreground, in her usual servant's clothes, gaze lowered in a demure manner. The background features the silhouette of a dragon with its wings spread. The text winding around the women reads: "My soul left me, I felt if fly from me... and lodge in her." Sarah Waters. End description.]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Done with Micron pens and a Tombow brush pen. 7 x 10 in.
> 
> The quote is from Sarah Waters' novel Affinity.
> 
> This is part of a small series of Morgana/Gwen fanart I've been doing with the themes "dragons" and "Sarah Waters' quotes." They are inspired partly by [a Pillowfort/Tumblr post](https://www.pillowfort.social/posts/1153108) which bemoaned the lack of fanfics with messy and complicated wlw to balance out the abundance of soft femslash out there. So since I already wanted to do some Merlin fanart with motifs or symbolism weaved into it, I decided to do Morgwen with dragon visuals because dragons are not stereotypically "feminine" and "soft".


	2. A Shared Look

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[Image Description: The fanart is a composite piece featuring Morgana and Gwen with text. In the foreground is Morgana appearing as dignified as she did in early seasons of the show. She seems to be sharing a sly smile with Gwen across a distance. Gwen likewise appears well-dressed and smiling. A dragon's wing and tail frame the women in an abstract fashion. Text on the wing reads: "It's a curious, wanting thing." Sarah Waters. End description.]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Done with Micron pens and a Tombow brush pen. 7 x 10 in.
> 
> The quote is from Sarah Waters' novel Fingersmith.
> 
> I have a bit of a headcanon for this one! I imagine it to be an altered future in Gwen marries Lancelot (who lives and remains a knight), which boosts her social status as she and Lancelot become well-respected. Morgana, rather than turning evil, spends years among the Druids, but later returns to Camelot and she and Gwen are drawn to each other more than ever before. Lancelot is in the know and learns to be understanding of Gwen's poly inclinations. I can't stop headcanon-ing Gwen as poly because her heart is so big that there's room for multiple people. ❤


	3. We Walked Together

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[Image description: A pen and ink art features composite visuals of a dragon, the backs of Morgana and Gwen, and a castle. The dragon is swooping down and breathing fire which spells out the words: "A time we walked together." The agitated dragon contrasts with the calm disposition of the women. Morgana has her arm around Gwen and they are looking toward the castle of Camelot, which is a distant silhouette among the trees. End description.]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Done with Micron pens and a Tombow brush pen. 7 x 10 in.
> 
> I'm still learning how best to put together a piece like this. It's always a bit intimidating when you're working with pen and cannot do much to edit what you put down, but I think I'm pretty happy with it. If you have any advice you are welcome to share it with me! The way the text is expressively incorporated into the drawing is inspired by William Hunter's illustrations in the book The Greek Gods.
> 
> The quote is from Sarah Water's novel Fingersmith. The full quote is, "But by then I could only see that there was once a time when we had walked apart, and then a time when we walked together." I believe it's from chapter 4.


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